Cardio vs weight training to loose weight?!?!
Replies
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Calories for weight loss. Seriously, just calories. Hit your calorie goal, lose weight.
Macros and food types for health and some fitness goals. Some people do better low carb, some people do better with balance macros, some people find eating "clean" helpful, others just need to get enough protein regardless of where it comes from. You have to figure this out for yourself, which is easier with consistent and accurate logging.
Exercise for fitness. Cardio will help you burn a few more calories. Strength training will minimize muscle loss while in a deficit. But neither is necessary for weight loss.
I ate 50% carbs, 25% protein, and 25% fat while losing, for the most part. I ate some junk food, some convenience food, but tried to stick to a foundation of whole foods to help with satiety. I walked and did strength training dvds at home to buy myself a few extra calories to eat. I lost weight because I kept a consistent food log and hit my calorie goal more times than not
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mymmsworld2 wrote: »Help!! I have two trainers telling me 2 very different things! One says workout weights and HIIT cardio the other says don’t waste energy on weights, put energy into cardio until you drop half of your goal. I have a lot to loose, ideally 80 lbs so please help me figure it out! I am eating clean with only green carbs and staying about 1200 calories a day. Thank you
I'd support the observations that you're getting bad advice from both trainers, but for different reasons.
The issue of calorie consumption has already been noted, but with respect to training both cardiovascular work and resistance work have value. In that sense it's worth looking at established plans, and to an extent what's best for you depends on your interests. Personally I enjoy running and cycling, but in essence you'll get much more health benefit from steady state CV work than what some marketeer would brand as HIIT. That is not to say that classes and DVDs don't have value, but they're more limited in terms of CV benefit.
With respect to resistance work, there are lots of options. I'm more of a bodyweight advocate, largely because I find gyms very boring, but you'll get significant benefit from resistance work of some kind.
With respect to your diet, I'm not a fan of restrictions unless there is a medical reason for them. Green carbs are no better or worse than anything else, so I suspect that whoever has advocated that is talking nonsense. fwiw, with respect to qualifications, it's worth looking athow people are qualified, and if they actually have the skills to advise. Anyone giving you that advice shouldn't be receiving your fees.1 -
MeanderingMammal wrote: »mymmsworld2 wrote: »Help!! I have two trainers telling me 2 very different things! One says workout weights and HIIT cardio the other says don’t waste energy on weights, put energy into cardio until you drop half of your goal. I have a lot to loose, ideally 80 lbs so please help me figure it out! I am eating clean with only green carbs and staying about 1200 calories a day. Thank you
I'd support the observations that you're getting bad advice from both trainers, but for different reasons.
The issue of calorie consumption has already been noted, but with respect to training both cardiovascular work and resistance work have value. In that sense it's worth looking at established plans, and to an extent what's best for you depends on your interests. Personally I enjoy running and cycling, but in essence you'll get much more health benefit from steady state CV work than what some marketeer would brand as HIIT. That is not to say that classes and DVDs don't have value, but they're more limited in terms of CV benefit.
With respect to resistance work, there are lots of options. I'm more of a bodyweight advocate, largely because I find gyms very boring, but you'll get significant benefit from resistance work of some kind.
With respect to your diet, I'm not a fan of restrictions unless there is a medical reason for them. Green carbs are no better or worse than anything else, so I suspect that whoever has advocated that is talking nonsense. fwiw, with respect to qualifications, it's worth looking athow people are qualified, and if they actually have the skills to advise. Anyone giving you that advice shouldn't be receiving your fees.
Yes I agree both have merit but basically what happened is I went to a local wellness center and met with their certified nutritionist and trainer. He is the advocate of CV first then adding strength later. He stated that I only have so much energy to burn when starting ,so CV is the most bang for the buck so to speak. He also stated healthy calorie counting by limiting carbs to before dinner. Protein burns during rem sleep or carbs to fat during rem. The other trainer is from a nutrishop. I had a friend talk me into a challenge thru them. They sold me 200 in products and told me no carbs other than green and protein protein protein. They also said it was, and I quote “ ridiculous to not strength train to loose weight because muscle burns more fat” I admit I got caught in the hype of doing this and forgot my basics. Btw I am a nurse.
Thank you for making me examine what MY goals are.2 -
mymmsworld2 wrote: »MeanderingMammal wrote: »mymmsworld2 wrote: »Help!! I have two trainers telling me 2 very different things! One says workout weights and HIIT cardio the other says don’t waste energy on weights, put energy into cardio until you drop half of your goal. I have a lot to loose, ideally 80 lbs so please help me figure it out! I am eating clean with only green carbs and staying about 1200 calories a day. Thank you
I'd support the observations that you're getting bad advice from both trainers, but for different reasons.
The issue of calorie consumption has already been noted, but with respect to training both cardiovascular work and resistance work have value. In that sense it's worth looking at established plans, and to an extent what's best for you depends on your interests. Personally I enjoy running and cycling, but in essence you'll get much more health benefit from steady state CV work than what some marketeer would brand as HIIT. That is not to say that classes and DVDs don't have value, but they're more limited in terms of CV benefit.
With respect to resistance work, there are lots of options. I'm more of a bodyweight advocate, largely because I find gyms very boring, but you'll get significant benefit from resistance work of some kind.
With respect to your diet, I'm not a fan of restrictions unless there is a medical reason for them. Green carbs are no better or worse than anything else, so I suspect that whoever has advocated that is talking nonsense. fwiw, with respect to qualifications, it's worth looking athow people are qualified, and if they actually have the skills to advise. Anyone giving you that advice shouldn't be receiving your fees.
Yes I agree both have merit but basically what happened is I went to a local wellness center and met with their certified nutritionist and trainer. He is the advocate of CV first then adding strength later. He stated that I only have so much energy to burn when starting ,so CV is the most bang for the buck so to speak. He also stated healthy calorie counting by limiting carbs to before dinner. Protein burns during rem sleep or carbs to fat during rem. The other trainer is from a nutrishop. I had a friend talk me into a challenge thru them. They sold me 200 in products and told me no carbs other than green and protein protein protein. They also said it was, and I quote “ ridiculous to not strength train to loose weight because muscle burns more fat” I admit I got caught in the hype of doing this and forgot my basics. Btw I am a nurse.
Thank you for making me examine what MY goals are.
sounds like they just wanted to sell a product. they are full of it. and a dietitian would be better than a nutritionist ,trainer or not. and you only burn certain things during REM sleep? what a crock. your body burns calories 24/71 -
mymmsworld2 wrote: »He stated that I only have so much energy to burn when starting ,so CV is the most bang for the buck so to speak.
I can see where that argument comes from, although I'd articulate it in a different way. Jumping from negligible activity to training six days per week is likely to be too much for people, so one needs to build up over time. In that sense CV work gives greatest contribution to a calorie deficit.
However I wouldn't restrict a build up to when you've lost half our goal, I'd be suggesting building up the volume and intensity of training over 2-3 months progressively.
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Cardio is a quick way to burn calories for fat loss. It burns very little... 20 minutes on a treadmill for a single cookie? I'd rather not eat the cookie and save time. Heck, replace 1 calorie heavy meal with a nice salad and I just ssved an hour at the gym and probably got better nutrition. It is totally fantastic for heart health though. I don't have a heart though.
Weight training is good for retaining muscle mass when losing weight. You'll want muscle. Fat will hang from muscle and look just dandy, like fine drapes across a nice curtain rod. No muscle and fat just flops there... like fine drapes... crumpled all over the floor getting in the way.
Both trainers honestly offered decent advice for your goals. But, another trainer could come by and say "leave the gym, don't come back. Just eat less" and he'd be equally as right and valuable... actually, probably more.
Internet is filled with sarcasm and we ALL know sarcasm doesn't translate well over text... but we do it anyway.
Stick to MFP. Log what you eat. Ask questions and get answers. Nobody here wants to sell you anything. The ONLY thing we want is to see you succeed (and spew our sarcasm on the forums).2 -
mymmsworld2 wrote: »MeanderingMammal wrote: »mymmsworld2 wrote: »Help!! I have two trainers telling me 2 very different things! One says workout weights and HIIT cardio the other says don’t waste energy on weights, put energy into cardio until you drop half of your goal. I have a lot to loose, ideally 80 lbs so please help me figure it out! I am eating clean with only green carbs and staying about 1200 calories a day. Thank you
I'd support the observations that you're getting bad advice from both trainers, but for different reasons.
The issue of calorie consumption has already been noted, but with respect to training both cardiovascular work and resistance work have value. In that sense it's worth looking at established plans, and to an extent what's best for you depends on your interests. Personally I enjoy running and cycling, but in essence you'll get much more health benefit from steady state CV work than what some marketeer would brand as HIIT. That is not to say that classes and DVDs don't have value, but they're more limited in terms of CV benefit.
With respect to resistance work, there are lots of options. I'm more of a bodyweight advocate, largely because I find gyms very boring, but you'll get significant benefit from resistance work of some kind.
With respect to your diet, I'm not a fan of restrictions unless there is a medical reason for them. Green carbs are no better or worse than anything else, so I suspect that whoever has advocated that is talking nonsense. fwiw, with respect to qualifications, it's worth looking athow people are qualified, and if they actually have the skills to advise. Anyone giving you that advice shouldn't be receiving your fees.
Yes I agree both have merit but basically what happened is I went to a local wellness center and met with their certified nutritionist and trainer. He is the advocate of CV first then adding strength later. He stated that I only have so much energy to burn when starting ,so CV is the most bang for the buck so to speak. He also stated healthy calorie counting by limiting carbs to before dinner. Protein burns during rem sleep or carbs to fat during rem. The other trainer is from a nutrishop. I had a friend talk me into a challenge thru them. They sold me 200 in products and told me no carbs other than green and protein protein protein. They also said it was, and I quote “ ridiculous to not strength train to loose weight because muscle burns more fat” I admit I got caught in the hype of doing this and forgot my basics. Btw I am a nurse.
Thank you for making me examine what MY goals are.
Oh dear!
You have fallen prey to some simply awful "experts".
(Wonder if the nutritionist bought their qualification online because he/she is talking twaddle.)
You have far more energy when you start dieting than after months of being calorie restricted.
What you will gain from an exercise routine is more fitness - simple as that. Building up steadily and sensibly does have merit though.
Those ideas about carb timing are ridiculous - you put food in your mouth and your body will use it irrespective of time of day. Do they actually know and understand you are calorie counting because the only real benefit to carb timing for weight loss would be if you ate less because of the time restriction.
"Protein burns during rem sleep or carbs to fat during rem." Say what? This is meaningless gobbledegook.
(Carbs in fact very rarely turn to fat, in a calorie deficit you have a net loss of body fat whatever your macros are.)
Green carbs doesn't stand up to logic does it?
Tomatoes ok if green but not red? Ditto peppers? Ditto apples? Ditto grapes? Broccoli ok but not cauliflower?
At best it's a crude attempt to reduce calories with a massive food restriction - but again you are counting calories!!
Think these people are after your money.
Is there a properly qualified dietitian (not "nutritionist" which can mean something or nothing...) where you work?
As regards exercise please make the first thing you do is run away from these charlatans.
You can get loads of free and sensible information from just reading the sticky threads at the top of these forums.
(BTW - the muscle burning a load of calories is bunk too. If you manage to add any muscle during your dieting phase, which is very hard to do anyway, each pound added will burn roughly 6 calories per pound per day. Whoopee do.)6 -
MeanderingMammal wrote: »mymmsworld2 wrote: »He stated that I only have so much energy to burn when starting ,so CV is the most bang for the buck so to speak.
I can see where that argument comes from, although I'd articulate it in a different way. Jumping from negligible activity to training six days per week is likely to be too much for people, so one needs to build up over time. In that sense CV work gives greatest contribution to a calorie deficit.
However I wouldn't restrict a build up to when you've lost half our goal, I'd be suggesting building up the volume and intensity of training over 2-3 months progressively.
I was just about to say all of this...
When I started, there was no way I was going to be able to lift 3x per week and do cardio 3x per week coming from ground zero...as in it hurt to walk around the block because I smoked 2-3 PAD and would get winded. All I did initially was walk a few days per week and eventually after about a month or so I was walking most days for an hour...moved to a C25K plan and did that. I eventually got myself into the weight room, but it was in my 3rd-4th month and my body was much more accustomed to moving a lot more.3 -
Cardio is a quick way to burn calories for fat loss. It burns very little... 20 minutes on a treadmill for a single cookie? I'd rather not eat the cookie and save time. Heck, replace 1 calorie heavy meal with a nice salad and I just ssved an hour at the gym and probably got better nutrition. It is totally fantastic for heart health though. I don't have a heart though.
Weight training is good for retaining muscle mass when losing weight. You'll want muscle. Fat will hang from muscle and look just dandy, like fine drapes across a nice curtain rod. No muscle and fat just flops there... like fine drapes... crumpled all over the floor getting in the way.
Both trainers honestly offered decent advice for your goals. But, another trainer could come by and say "leave the gym, don't come back. Just eat less" and he'd be equally as right and valuable... actually, probably more.
Internet is filled with sarcasm and we ALL know sarcasm doesn't translate well over text... but we do it anyway.
Stick to MFP. Log what you eat. Ask questions and get answers. Nobody here wants to sell you anything. The ONLY thing we want is to see you succeed (and spew our sarcasm on the forums).
I thrive on sarcasm2 -
Yes seeing a dietitian thru my MD next week. I will get there, I am determined. I want a healthy lifestyle so I can enjoy my 10 year old daughter who is a gymnast and equestrian so Uber fit. I also want to model good eating habits and body image. We lost my husband, her dad, last year and I had spent most of the last several years caring for him, so like I said it’s me time now which correlates to better time with my daughter7
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mymmsworld2 wrote: »Yes seeing a dietitian thru my MD next week. I will get there, I am determined. I want a healthy lifestyle so I can enjoy my 10 year old daughter who is a gymnast and equestrian so Uber fit. I also want to model good eating habits and body image. We lost my husband, her dad, last year and I had spent most of the last several years caring for him, so like I said it’s me time now which correlates to better time with my daughter
sorry for your loss. and yes wanting to be healthier to be here longer for our children is a great goal to strive for.2 -
HIIT - (real HIIT that is) probably completely inappropriate for you - not required for weight loss.
Weights - not required for weight loss, but a good thing to do while losing weight (or not losing weight).
Cardio - not required for weight loss, but a good thing to do while losing weight (or not losing weight).
Eating clean - whatever that actually means it's not required for weight loss.
Only green carbs - why miss out on great sources of nutrition because some foods are the wrong colour?
The ONLY things required are a sustainable calorie deficit, time and patience.
I hope you realise that your very low calorie goal is plus exercise calories? (Your trainers won't know that by the way.)
If you realise that exercise isn't to increase your deficit then you realise that your choice of exercise comes down to what the fitness, health and enjoyment benefits are.
Don't make the process tougher than it has to be, it's far more important you get to goal weight and stay there rather than fall off the wagon.
So you can't exercise more to create a calorie deficit? I just want to make sure I understand this.0 -
justin15718 wrote: »HIIT - (real HIIT that is) probably completely inappropriate for you - not required for weight loss.
Weights - not required for weight loss, but a good thing to do while losing weight (or not losing weight).
Cardio - not required for weight loss, but a good thing to do while losing weight (or not losing weight).
Eating clean - whatever that actually means it's not required for weight loss.
Only green carbs - why miss out on great sources of nutrition because some foods are the wrong colour?
The ONLY things required are a sustainable calorie deficit, time and patience.
I hope you realise that your very low calorie goal is plus exercise calories? (Your trainers won't know that by the way.)
If you realise that exercise isn't to increase your deficit then you realise that your choice of exercise comes down to what the fitness, health and enjoyment benefits are.
Don't make the process tougher than it has to be, it's far more important you get to goal weight and stay there rather than fall off the wagon.
So you can't exercise more to create a calorie deficit? I just want to make sure I understand this.
That's not what he's saying. He's saying that the calorie target given by MFP is already your deficit and assumes no exercise...it's not included in your activity level. MFP intends for people to eat back exercise calories to account for that activity. In not doing so, your calorie deficit becomes larger which isn't always a good thing and is often a very bad thing.
Basically, letting your diet do the work...exercising for your health and wellness...and to be able to eat more.
ETA: a 1200 calorie deficit for a female assumes a sedentary lifestyle and is already a huge deficit as it is generally a target of 2 Lbs per week or a 1,000 calorie per day deficit from maintenance. Doing a bunch of exercise on top of that and not fueling that activity isn't good at all.
In general, trying to create a deficit with exercise and no change in eating and calorie intake is very inefficient.4 -
mymmsworld2 wrote: »Help!! I have two trainers telling me 2 very different things! One says workout weights and HIIT cardio the other says don’t waste energy on weights, put energy into cardio until you drop half of your goal. I have a lot to loose, ideally 80 lbs so please help me figure it out! I am eating clean with only green carbs and staying about 1200 calories a day. Thank you
I can tell you now, if you genuinely have 80 lbs to lose 1200 calories is far too low long term.
It's just not sustainable and will ultimately only lead to either binge eating or you falling off the wagon and gaining a good amount back.
My Wife cuts on 1300 calories and she weighs 130 lbs.
A simple 500 calories deficit is enough for good weight loss.
The key to any diet is knowing exactly how many calories you need on a daily basis, and just eating under that number).
First you need to workout how many calories your body needs in a day (Total daily energy expenditure).
Weigh yourself first thing in the morning.
Input your data in this website www.tdeecalculator.net
Choose whichever activity level is closest to yourself.
Then click the cutting calories button (under the macronutrients heading), this will give you your starting calories, and what you need to stick to on a daily basis.
Try to get as close as possible to your cutting calories every day, a little over or under is fine but no more than say 20 - 30 calories either way.
Foods to eat:
Absolutely anything you want, Just weigh and track everything you eat and drink inc milk in tea & coffee etc. (don't add calories back in when you've exercised, MFP will ask if you want to do this).
Check your TDEE on a weekly or daily basis, because it obviously drops as your weight comes down, and adjust calories accordingly in Myfitnesspal.
If you want quicker weight loss you can obviously add in cardio and or resistance exercises, not only will this help build muscle but it will also create a bigger calorie deficit.
If you were to do this I would recommend just a 30 min incline walk on the treadmill or walk outside at a steady state.
Drink plenty water, at least 2-2.5 ltrs a day.
And that's it, just carry on until you are at the weight you want to be.
Good luck.1 -
I am not an expert but I am journeying the same road. I find the biggest thing for me is to log EVERYTHING that goes into my mouth. I wasn’t eating my exercise calories but someone responded to a post of mine and suggested that she uses her exercise calories to treat herself. I really like that idea. I walk a lot and when I don’t walk, I use Jessica Smith TV on You Tube. She has a great variety of programmes from 10 to 60 minutes, yoga, HIIT, walking, strength etc. She is also very motivating. Good luck with your journey. Eat what you like. I increased protein (sometimes chicken is my snack haha) , increased veggies, and decreased carbs but every day. I have a piece of toast. All in moderation.1
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Sparkeysworld wrote: »mymmsworld2 wrote: »Help!! I have two trainers telling me 2 very different things! One says workout weights and HIIT cardio the other says don’t waste energy on weights, put energy into cardio until you drop half of your goal. I have a lot to loose, ideally 80 lbs so please help me figure it out! I am eating clean with only green carbs and staying about 1200 calories a day. Thank you
I can tell you now, if you genuinely have 80 lbs to lose 1200 calories is far too low long term.
It's just not sustainable and will ultimately only lead to either binge eating or you falling off the wagon and gaining a good amount back.
My Wife cuts on 1300 calories and she weighs 130 lbs.
A simple 500 calories deficit is enough for good weight loss.
The key to any diet is knowing exactly how many calories you need on a daily
Thank you!!! This makes sense. I am tracking everything I put in my mouth as accurately as I know how. I did use the calculator you suggested. I will try to do that. Just since I am putting it all out there anyways I am 5’9 and currently 255.3 (down 6 lbs yahoo) my goal weight is ideally 175 but my first stage goal is 30 lbs. then 200 then 175.
I am doing biking and walking. As well as interval jogging 2 days a week. My biggest stumbling block is the headache right now. I assume it’s because I drastically cut out sugars, including most natural ones so I am going to go eat a bowl of fruit0 -
Headache? Check your Iron also. I recently have been roughly 80% vegan due to digestion issues, and thats why I started using this site again. I check every now and then with this place to give me a guide post. But I noticed the Iron deficiency in my stats, I've been a little light headed lately, might be sinus' tho. Anyway, something to consider if you're on a restrictive diet.1
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Hi Mymmsworld2
I hope this helps you out, cardio (HITT) lasts for about 60 mins after your work out ( burning calories )Lifting weights lasts a lot longer burning calories through the day, also with lifting weights you get a lean toned body.Eating green or eating clean ? you want to loose about 1lbs/ 1.5lbs a week
You have the app, perhaps you need to workout your calorie intake ( Protein 40%/ Carbs 40%/ Fats 20%).
What ever you do always hit your protein intake per day, for loosing weight or gaining muscle, and did you know a good quality Fish Oil supplement helps to loose fat too
This is what i am doing at the moment, my body is toning and im aiming to loose body fat but retain muscle, and it seems to be working.
As i say this is only my suggestion, i hope it give you thought and some insight.
Take care
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Headache after a diet change makes me wonder if you have drastically cut caffeine?1
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